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accepted any of the loans (I was offered the Direct Unsubsidized Loan and the Parent PLUS Loan).
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Technically YOU aren’t being offered the Plus loans…you’re parents are being invited to apply for qualification for a Plus loan. Have they said that they will apply and be qualified for a Plus loan?
I do think it’s strange that an INCOMING freshman hasn’t yet had her FA pkg finalized. Sure, RETURNING students often don’t know all that they’re getting until late because FA offices concentrate on incoming frosh first.
My concern is that @Lovenetc doens’t have full funding for all FOUR years. Will there be a shortfall for years 2-4?
This OP is stubborn and may be following advice that she received to just figure out year one and the rest will work out. That is a poor plan.
OP, I received the same advice for grad school. I followed that advice and it did work out. But I was VERY, VERY lucky. Through a 4 year renewable outside merit scholarship, graduating college early to leave some of that award for grad school, getting accepted to a grad school with such a ridiculous endowment that they are able to be a part of the student loan business, an amazing family friend that was willing to co-sign loans for me, an easy good-paying on campus part-time job from a vendor, very well paying summer jobs, and a private foundation scholarship that covered some of my living expenses, I was able to graduate. Oh, and a lot of free food on campus so I was able to save on groceries. Do you see how many things had to happen for it to work out? The chances of it working out for you are VERY, VERY slim. It works out for far fewer people than not. And I would never, ever recommend taking the chance today, especially given your future plans.
Bottom line, do not go to college without a 4-year plan to cover all costs.
I disagree with the ‘4 years or nothing’ plans. You do the best you can, but not everyone has everything worked out.
This student had nothing a few months ago. Since then, she’s received a $1000 scholarship, worked to earn an Americorps grant, applied and been accepted for a service/grant program to cover tuition for freshman year. She’s agreed to the student loans for herself. Her parents have said they are willing to borrow or pay for the rest.
I sent my kids to freshman year with enough to pay for the amounts not covered for that year but unsure about the next few years. We’re limping along. For one she’s actually got more covered for her 2nd and 3rd years, but has had to take the loans. For the other child it is much tighter financially. She needs to work more. She may have to take a break and work a semester. I think she will be in a better position to work and save as a 21 year old than she would have been as an 18 year old, so I think it was the right choice to start college, get as much in as she could, take the break (if necessary) to replenish the funds needed for college.
I do think Lovenetc, like my daughter, needs to work more and volunteer less. In the next few years, she can do more to reduce her costs. Living off campus usually doesn’t cost as much. Students start being a little better with expenses, better at figuring out how to get books cheaper, food cheaper, pick up some extra work over breaks. My daughter earned about $300 last Christmas (as a sophomore) by babysitting and dog sitting, and that was just extra cash that went right to spring semester books. She needs to tell the grandmothers and parents that she can’t go on vacations, that she needs to work.
I think trying to figure it out as you go is a mistake. If there’s no money for college there now, how is it going to magically appear next year, and the year after that? In order to receive the NGSC award she’s required to do an internship (20-30 hours week for 7-10 weeks), so I don’t know how much time she’ll have to earn money for school.
@Lovenetc, Did your parents ever give you a figure for what they could pay every year without borrowing? I know you were going to ask, but don’t remember if you ever mentioned their response. If they can swing $8-10k/year, you don’t have a problem. If they can’t, then you might. Don’t you have family (a grandmother or uncle) living near ASU? Could you live with them after freshmen year? That would be a great solution too.
Well, it’s nice that you know where the $25k or $50k per year is going to come from and would never start school without having an exact plan that will not change. Great. I didn’t have that for 2 kids but they didn’t want to delay going to school. What have I done to figure it out as they go along? They qualify for more FA, they continue to apply for scholarships, they work, they reduced their living expenses after freshman year.
And if the money isn’t there next year? She’ll have to take a break and work, look for other ways of financing her school, perhaps do a co-op.
@twoinanddone As I said, sometimes it works out, but that is rarely. This OP had other options, but refused to consider them. Your kids chose to take the risk, and that’s a decision only you and your family can make. But I wouldn’t recommend it to others, especially a stranger on the internet. Many who have that plan don’t finish their degree and end up in debt that they cannot pay. There are other routes that are less risky, i.e., 2 yrs community college + 2 years at a four-year school, or if the stats are there (unfortunately the testing piece was not for this OP), focusing on big merit.
But I don’t remember any other options the OP had. She applied to Stanford and some school in Florida that was the same cost or more than ASU. Her options now are to go to ASU or stay home. If it doesn’t work next year, she’ll have the same option, to find the money or stay home. She has no other cheaper option that will work for 4 years. She’s not passing up a big merit scholarship.
I don’t think it is rare for people to not have 4 years of college funds in the bank. I think there are thousands of students figuring it out every year how they will pay for the upcoming year, looking for scholarships, working jobs they might not like too much.
Hey guys,
Sorry I didn’t respond as much today.
Tomorrow I am settling EVERYTHING out with mi familia, only because my dad asked about when everything was due.
I’ll see if I can message some of you guys. I might need to have my account taken down (For other reasons)
Thank you all for taking the time for responding.
I’m really into applying for more scholarships, and I have some I am interested in and bookmarked, but I don’t think it will be as worth it as I believe it should be. I’m so hesitant. I believe that my GPA and grades themselves are fine, it’s just my test scores that get in the way.
I set myself up for failure by wanting to go to college. I used up whatever money I could to apply to Stanford (Jokes on me), the University of South Florida, and ASU. I really liked Stanford, but knew I didn’t really have a good shot at getting in. USF flattered me with stuff in the mail and constant emails. In the end, I was only accepted to one of these schools, and even that got to me because many people think ASU is a “party” school and has low repute.
I don’t think you can have your account “taken down”, but you can change your profile picture and choose to stop posting.
I’m going to send an email, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll probably do that, @Madison85 
Thanks!
@Lovenetc, I hope everything works out well for you. If you have any questions, please ask.
I agree that your account won’t be taken down. Just change your photo to something generic. I think if you remove the pix altogether, it defaults to the College Confidential logo.
Please don’t count on making up any gaps with outside scholarships. The chances of getting $10k/year or more are slim and many colleges subtract them from the grants the college awarded, so they don’t affect the net cost at all. ASU doesn’t appear to allow scholarship stacking.
It’s great that you’re sitting down with your dad to sort it out. If you can live with relatives after the 1st year, it might be affordable. (Make sure you don’t have to remain on campus to keep the NGSC scholarship).
Clarify the internship requirement too. You have to spend 7-10 weeks working 20-30 hours/week to keep the tuition scholarship. Is that paid or are they volunteer positions that give you college credit instead of money? You really need to work as much as possible in the summer, but if half your work week is supposed to be a volunteer position it’s going to cut into your earning potential. So will the volunteering (300 hours) that qualified you for the ~$1200 service grant. I think you’re better off finding a paying job. If you can work full-time next summer, you can probably raise ~$3k.
I don’t remember if you have siblings. If you do, be careful about borrowing more than the federal student loan (~$5500/year). If your parents cover their share by borrowing, they may not having the borrowing capacity to help any younger siblings.
Good luck. Please keep us updated.